Jerry Williams passes

[Bob Keller]

Larry Harrington from Bachmann Trains just called to tell me that Jerry Williams passed away this week. Jerry founded Williams Reproductions (later Williams Electric Trains) and sold the firm to Bachmann several years ago. 

My dealings with him were always top notch and he was a straight-shooter in relation to industry topics.

 

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/baltimoresun/obituary.aspx?n=jerome-malone-williams&pid=182265968&fhid=11627

 

Remarks from Jerry Williams' induction into the Hobby Manufacturer's Association Hall of Fame (Courtesy Larry Harrington).

 

Jerry Williams was born on March 1, 1937 in Los Angeles, California.  At a young age his family moved to Frederick, Maryland, a small town in the western part of Maryland.  Jerry always had an interest in trains at a young age.  He had a few pieces of Lionel trains, and eagerly awaited the Lionel catalog each year. 

 

As a young adult Jerry had ambitions of leaving Frederick because there were not many job opportunities in the area.  He decided to join the Air Force.  He found the Air Force was a great tool for him to gain a valuable education.  He took several courses while in the Air Force . After his discharge, he attended and graduated from American University with a degree in Mathematics.  He worked for Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory as a mathematician.

 

In the mid to late 1960’s Jerry rediscovered his interest in model trains.  He would go to estate and yard sales to look for collectable Lionel & Ives trains.  In 1968, Jerry joined a growing organization called the Train Collectors Association (TCA).   The TCA hosted many train shows /swap-meets that allowed members to learn, buy and sell trains.  Over the years, he discovered that many desirable models were almost impossible to find in “like-new” condition.   Most of the trains available were in need of repair or restoration.  He thought that there would be a market for new trains similar to those made in the 1920’s through 1940’s. 

 

In 1969 Jerry and a good friend, Fred Mill, founded Classic Models Corporation and produced  several new Standard Gauge Trains.   Jerry and Fred had different ideas about the future of Classic Models.  Jerry had the idea to make replicas of the hard to find Lionel and Ives items, while Fred wanted to continue the same approach.  In December of 1971 Jerry and Fred parted ways and Jerry founded Williams Reproductions Limited.  Initially Jerry concentrated on the desirable tinplate models like the 1694 Ives locomotive, the Lionel 9E, Lionel 381E, Lionel 408 and others. 

 

Around 1975, Jerry started to shift his attention to the O Gauge market, first with kits, then with completed models.  The replicas of the Lionel Madsion cars, FM TrainMaster, and Classic GG-1 were among the first “Post-War” reproductions and the beginning of the Golden Memories Series.

 

In the mid to late 1980’s Jerry explored another idea; Scale sized locomotives for 3-rail track.  They started out as very simple models of common steam locomotives.  However, in the late 1980’s Jerry introduced many models for the first time in 3 rail including the Big Boy, Challenger, N&W 611,  Camelback, and Cab Forward.  This was the birth of “Hi-Rail” or scale sized items for 3-rail track.  At this time, Jerry was also branching out in the real estate market.  He started developing single story office complexes. 

 

The recession of the late 1980’s caused a steep decline in demand of luxury items like trains.  This coupled with the banks calling in the notes on Jerry’s real estate projects caused a real strain on the company’s cash flow.  Jerry was a survivor, he did what was necessary to stay in business, cutting the production, lowering prices, and selling off some of his personal assets.

 

From 1990 to 2007, Jerry concentrated on the development of models of diesels, passenger cars and rolling stock and the expansion of the Golden Memories line.   In 2000, he indulged himself by making one of his favorite models, the Lionel 671 turbine locomotive first cataloged in the mid-1940’s.  Most people discouraged him from making this model since they were common items, but Jerry’s instinct was right again and this model proved to be a success.

Although Williams Reproductions Limited was never the biggest company in O Gauge, Jerry’s vision and competition forced other companies to raise their standards.  Additionally, many of today’s train manufacturers have benefited from the experience that they learned while working with Jerry. 

 

These include Mike Wolf and Andy Edleman of MTH, Ken Silvestri of Broadway Limited, and Larry Harrington of Bachmann Industries. He should be credited with the birth of Hi-Rail and recognized as a major reason for the size of the O Gauge market today.

[sir james I]

Sad to read about Jerry.

He provided a product thats was affordable to all.

RIP Jerry

[robmcc]

Wow. Sorry to hear. I credit Williams as one who got me back into the hobby when I was young(er) and broke. Williams locomotives may not have all of the "bells and whistles" and yes, sometimes EMD and GE parts are interchanged , but I never had any issues and price was always great. They still are top notch performers. Thanks, Mr. Williams and RIP.

[arkady]

Never met the man, but I own and enjoy his products.  Many thanks to you, Jerry.

[Firelock76]

So sad, I've got a number of Williams products and haven't been disappointed with any of them.

Rest in peace Jerry, we owe you a lot.

[sir james I]

1850 views and jerry only gets 4 replies. Oh how things have changed,

[Firelock76]

I can't figure that one out either.  On any discussion thread there always seems to be a LOT more views than comments.

Come on folks, don't be shy!  There's no strangers here, just friends you haven't met yet!

[rtraincollector]

May you rest in peace Jerry. You put out a great piece and a fair price on it. You will be missed. 

[Firelock76]

A really sad thing is the way Bachmann's slashed the Williams product line.  Compare a "Williams by Bachman" catalog from 2012 to the the current 2016 one and quite frankly it's shocking.

I know business is business and you have to cut the slow-movers or no-movers and move forward, but was that the case here?  I almost get the impression Bachman bought the Williams line and then didn't know what to do with it after they got it.  A lot of good, if not great, items at reasonable prices, all gone. 

[robmcc]

Great point, Firelock. The one thing Bachmann didn't slash though was the pricing. Certainly quite a jump in MSRP since Jerry sold it off. Also, I went to the Bachmann website the other day to see if they posted anything on his passing. Nope.

[phillyreading]

RIP Jerry Williams. I loved the Williams line when Jerry Williams had it. Since Bachman took over they have raised prices and slashed offerings. The Crown Edition engines by Williams are my favorites.